Today’s generation thinks that all advertising lives on screen that they choose to open. Yet, some of the most effective ad placements in today’s date still exist in the real world, for example, on roadsides, at bus stops, inside airport terminals and even wrapped around vehicles.
The types of OOH advertising can span a wider range than most marketers tend to realize and choosing the right one can make or break a campaign. The following is your guide to OOH formats describing what they are, how they work and which will fit your business goals.
What Is Out-of-Home Advertising?
Out-of-home advertising or OOH advertising means any sort of advertising that reaches people outside of their home. It’s a broad OOH landscape – from large format billboard structures on highways to the smallest digital screens in the airport lounges.
The complete OOH ecosystem is mainly split into two primary categories i.e. the Traditional OOH and the Digital OOH. Traditional OOH mostly involves static and printed formats and Digital OOH involves screen-based dynamic formats and both can play a role in a well-rounded OOH campaign.
Out-of-home advertising works because it meets people where they already are. People who are commuting, walking, waiting or even shopping become your audience.
Types of OOH Advertising Explained
1. Billboard Advertising
This is easily one of the most recognizable types of OOH advertising in large format billboards. A large-format billboard is easily one of the most recognizable types of OOH advertising present in the outside world. Billboard advertising commands attention on highways as well as aerial roads with sheer scale.
Classic billboards tend to offer long-term cost-effective and ideal service meant for brand recollection. Standard OOH bulletins are primarily designed to be seen from a distance at speed, so it makes them absolutely perfect for high traffic corridors.
Classic OOH billboards still remain the backbone of outdoor advertising on a global scale and that also for a good reason.
2. Digital Billboard (DOOH)
The digital billboard also offers the same type of high visibility placement and can add flexibility. DOOH or digital out of home advertising allows your brand to rotate creatives, update messaging in real time and even buy inventory programmatically.
Static DOOH means an OOH ad can be easily triggered by weather, time of the day or even audience data. This makes digital out-of-home one of the most strategic OOH formats available out there.
DOOH formats can also support clean video which dramatically improves engagement when compared with static formats.
3. Street Furniture Advertising
Street furniture includes bus shelter panels, benches, kiosks and even phone booths. That is why street furniture advertising is often positioned at an eye level which helps create an intimate face-to-face encounter with the target audience.
These types of advertising displays are typically located among pedestrian walkways which make them a very good option for hyperlocal targeting.
The bus shelter is particularly powerful when it comes to this type of advertising. People waiting for transport are a captive and a receptive audience. Bus shelter ads can deliver high frequency exposure in dense city areas.
4. Transit Advertising
Next comes transit advertising. A transit media includes wrapped buses, metro cards, auto rickshaws as well as train station displays and even taxi panels. The commuter is the core audience over here – who, mid-commute, becomes receptive to the content around him.
Taxi advertising is another distinct and highly mobile subset. Full or partial wraps on taxis can easily reach local commuters & even tourists and businesses across wide geographic areas.
Transit formats are especially effective for app based services and quick commerce businesses.
5. Airport Advertising
Next is airport Advertising which tends to target one of the most valuable audience segments in out-of-home, affluent and time rich travellers. Airport media often includes backlit displays, digital panels at baggage claims and even aerobridge branding along with lounge placements.
The dwell time here is among the longest of any OOH format. Passengers wait and they notice your brand. Airport advertising is a premium placement but can deliver you exceptional brand-safe visibility which is great for selling luxury products or services.
6. Place-Based Media
Place-based media means the type of advertising that is often displayed in environments where people gather around, for example, malls, stadiums, gyms, cinemas, etc.
Interior place-based advertising sits inside these types of environments and can target captive audiences in a buying or leisure mindset. This type of digital place-based advertising adds dynamic, screen-based formats to these locations.
Arena and stadium advertising is one of the most high-impact place-based media applications, where ads are often displayed on scoreboards, dashers, etc.
7. Mobile Advertising (Vehicle Wraps & Trucks)
Mobile advertising means the usage of branded vehicles in order to carry your message across the city roads. This type of advertising format tends to include full truck wraps, LED mobile billboards and branded delivery fleets.
When compared with outdoor ads, mobile advertising can be routed a bit strategically, like event zones, competitor locations, or high footfall corridors. Plus, this type of outdoor advertising is particularly effective for product launches and event marketing.
8. Ambient and Guerrilla OOH
These forms of OOH advertising can easily break down convention. They may include floor graphics, elevator branding, stair risers and much more. Ambient and guerrilla advertising types can easily generate huge social media buzz and stop people mid-step.
They tend to work the best for youth brands, entertainment industry and for any business willing to invest in OOH creatives that can earn attention without traditional placement.
Conclusion
Understanding the main types of OOH format can become the foundation of any effective advertising campaign because different types of OOH advertising serve different objectives and the results often come from combining different types of OOH media intelligently across the entire ecosystem.
For brands that are serious about brand visibility, should opt for OOH advertising because it is unavoidable, contextual and offers high impact.
At Selvel One, we bring you decades of expertise to every type of OOH format out there, be it large format outdoor media to programmatic DOOH solutions. Contact us today if you want what the right OOH format can do for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the difference between OOH & DOOH?
In simple words, OOH covers all types of out-of-home formats including static, whereas DOOH refers specifically to digital screen-based platforms that offer you a more dynamic effect.
Which type of OOH advertising has the highest dwell time?
Advertising at airports and transit platforms tend to offer the longest amount of dwell time.
Can an OOH advertising be targeted and measured like digital ads?
Yes, when you opt for programmatic DOOH advertising combined with geofencing, mobile retargeting and QR-code based attribution – you can easily get sophisticated targeting along with measurement across every OOH campaign.